Thought matters

A few months ago, I was facilitating a creative project for a school as part of their gender awareness initiative. Fourth standard students were going to do a performance that was based on the idea of sports. As soon as I asked the question “So which sport shall we make a performance on?” there was absolute chaos. Everyone wanted to work on their favourite sport. Largely, two games stood out. Kabaddi and Badminton. I was first glad that cricket was not one of them! Then I realised that all the girls were shouting Badminton and the boys were cheering Kabaddi. So I said wonderful. We’ll take both the games and the boys will make a performance on Badminton and the girls would make a performance on Kabaddi. That’s it! There was even more chaos! The girls did not want to engage with Kabaddi because their parents told them that it was dangerous and they wanted to engage with Badminton because they liked PV Sindhu and Saina Nehwal. The boys told me that badminton was indeed a boring sport and started calling out name of their favourite Kabaddi league teams.There comes Big B, making its way into classrooms and playing with the minds of Class 4 students.I later noticed in that school that during the sports class that all classes were playing the sports that were most associated with their gender.Boys were playing football and Girls played throw ball. Boys played under the sun and Girls played under the trees. Now here’s how the patterns begin and stereotypes get reinforced over and over again.

I grew up playing all kinds of sports and I played Cricket for the College University team. When I tell people that I was the opening pace bowler of my college cricket team, there is a sense of wonder+doubt+disbelief+a hint of mockery that I can immediately sense in their eyes.This thought was echoed by a colleague who heads Diversity initiates in her organisation. As part of the sports day tournament, when cricket was being organised, the teams almost had no women in them, until she voluntarily signed up to be part of the team and well, she even got a wicket! It had not even struck the men that women could be part of the team as well. We have to acknowledge that our conditioning is so deep and our biases so ingrained that we fail to recognise them while we’re making decisions. The impact of this can be severe when we make business decisions.When we see more women taking up a sport and making a mark in the field, it makes people believe that they too can. It makes families believe that their daughters can excel in sports. We need to be inspired by the successes of Mary Kom, PV Sindhu, Sakshi Malik and Dipa Karmakar and at the same time acknowledge the hardships they went through before they met success. We need to motivate youngsters to play the sports they are interested in, without looking at whether it is appropriate for their gender. We also need to actively create support systems that will create the right circumstances for women to excel. Be it a corporate CEO or a Olympic medal winner, they’ve all said that they’ve done it because their families supported them. This means CHANGE really has to start at home and this starts with our attitude towards gender, defined norms and how we can enable our kids to push boundaries, blur lines and really play.In this #artforinclusion series, as part of my work with Interweave Consulting I am exploring unconscious bias and the many ways it creeps into our brains and spills over into our bodies: making us act, react and behave in ways we are not consciously aware of. Stay tuned and do share your stories to this post. It will add great value to the topic.#artforinclusion #unconsciousbias #genderbias #Episode3

A few months ago, I was standing in my balcony and talking to my neighbour, 7 year old Angelina. Angel lives and studies in Bangalore. She is a bright, smart and energetic kid in the block and we are good friends. Angel was holding a scale in her hand and scraping it against the balcony grill. When I asked her what she was upto, she said she was readying her knife to cut Paneer. Just as I was imagining Kadai Paneer for dinner, she clarified that it was a game that they played in school. The game was about preparing a meal spread and the children cut up white erasers to make them look like paneer cubes and prepared a feast. I was pleasantly surprised and told her that it was amazing that the entire class came together to prepare Paneer. She was again quick to clarify “Not the whole class. Only the girls.”“Angel, what about the boys?”“Oh they’re always playing silly football games”

Hello 2017 and hello to boxing children into doing what is expected of their gender.

Our brains are used to working on auto pilot that we mostly just go with the flow. We end up doing things that have been the norm and continue to do so. Unconscious Bias or Big B calls the shots.

I am now going to ask you to recall the last time you gifted a child something. It could have been a boy or a girl and it could have been a birthday, a house visit or any other occasion. Think about your gift and ask yourself why you made this choice. Now spend a moment and ask your self if the gift would have been the same if the kid was of the other gender.

One one hand, there are traditional gender stereotypes that we end up subscribing to - That boys are good at sports and girls are good at the Arts or that boys play with race cars and girls play with Barbie dolls. So we end up creating experiences for them that reinforce these stereotypes, over and over again. Whether we’re buying birthday presents, toys and books for children or taking them out to watch movies, we’re creating moments of communication which influence and create realities for them.

I’m NOT saying DO NOT buy Barbie dolls for your daughter or Cricket Bats for your sons. Just be mindful about the kinds of experiences you are creating for them and the kinds of energies that they are experiencing. Are their experiences enabling them to be creative, strong, caring, nurturing, friendly, competitive and more? Are they experiencing attributes of the masculine and the feminine?

I often hear the statement “You are overthinking this. Why can’t you just let it be?” I think the problem is that we haven’t thought about this enough. Being mindful and being aware of your own biases is the first step towards fighting unconscious bias. Saying Hello to the Big B in your brain will make you ask the right questions and you will make considered choices and decisions going forward - from buying a gift to framing opinions.

Children are keen observers. My son, who is 14 months old is able to grasp gestures, tones and mannerisms. In a way Big B is already befriending young minds. So Pause, and look at your choices and decisions through the lens of gender. Ask yourself if your statements or actions box children into categories of what is ideal for their gender. Encouarge them to pursue things even if it pushes boundaries of gender norms that society, culture and the media have created for us. That's how you will be doing your bit for #genderequality.

Two months ago, my husband and I were visiting friends and their 3 year old daughter . I bought her a punching bag (Girls today need this!) and a mask painting set. When we presented the gifts, our friends was actually quite glad that this was a different choice from the usual pink toys and frill frocks that they received and even before we finished this conversation, the kid was already punching on one hand and had the paint brush on the other, all excited to explore :-)​Here is a letter from Lego that reiterates this thought.

Well, What was it like for you when you were growing up? What kinds of games did you play and how gendered was your growing up?

In this #artforinclusion series, as part of my work with Interweave Consulting I am presently going to explore unconscious bias and the many ways it creeps into our brains and spills over into our bodies: making us act, react and behave in ways we are not consciously aware of. Stay tuned.​#artforinclusion #unconsciousbias #genderbias #Episode2

We know this word. It is part of us and dictates our actions. The Big B leads, making us think and act a certain way. Big B makes us choose A over B. The problem is that we really don't know Big B and yet it controls so much of what we do. I think it's about time we confronted Big B.

Hello BIAS.

Alright. Let's play a quick game. You need to basically choose A or B. Ready?

We all choose. BIAS is part of us. It informs us of our likes, thoughts and actions. Now imagine that someone made every choice that you dint make. What is your immediate response? You think this person is SO unlike you. Very different from YOU.

Now is when Big B makes an entrance at a very subconscious level and starts deciding your attitude towards this other person, which influences the way you treat this person. You think you are doing everything right but Big B is steering all of it without you knowing.

Hello Unconscious BIAS

Every decision we make impacts someone or something. From what you wear to work to whom you promote, from decisions that are simple to those that are complex, can we be sure that our decisions and actions enable inclusion on all fronts? Are your decisions in the workplace free of biases of gender, caste, class, language, education, lifestyle and more?

In this #artforinclusion series, as part of my work with Interweave Consulting I am presently going to explore unconscious bias and the many ways it creeps into our brains and spills over into our bodies: making us act, react and behave in ways we are not consciously aware of. Stay tuned.​#artforinclusion #unconsciousbias #Episode1

Let it be a year of Stories. of personal stories. of yours and mine. of ours. of each others.I have written a storyteller's oath that I intend to take very seriously this year. It's going to be a year of documenting personal stories, which can be starting points for many exciting things, including immersive performances. Here's the oath and I totally urge you to take the oath and keep to the monthly themes - Document your story and well find a way to perform them.

The Storyteller's oath

This is my story& if I don’t tell it

No one will know

If no one will knowNo one will care

If no one will careSomething is lost

This is my story& if I don’t tell it

Something is lost

So, let's look at some story themes for the coming year. I'm going to be writing with this lens every month. There is no limit to the number f stories/moments that you can pen down. So will you join me in sharing your personal stories? Let's document them and let's find a way to tell them and perform them. Share your story with the #mystoryoath

JUMPY Jan - Moments and events that make you jump, that make your heart skip a beat.FUNNY Feb - Moments that make you laugh so much that your stomach achesMIRACLE March - Something unexpected happened to youADMIRE April - Things, people and everything you admire and whyMANIC May - Things that drive you crazyJUICY June - What are you seduced by?JOKER July - Did you make a fool of yourself?ANGST August - What bothering you about the world would you want to change to make it better?SENSORY September - You sensed something. You had a strong gut feeling about this one.OSCILLATING October - Things that made you consider and reconsider, back and forth, indecisive to decisive, swinging to the extremesNAUGHTY November - Document some mischief and mayhem. Did you do something crazy and shock the world, shock yourself? DARING December - You went down a path that no one else took. You dared to do something. Something different.

So, now that we have some themes, let's look at every month with these lenses and see what we come by. Do share your stories with me: perform[at]visualrespiration[dot]com. We'll put some of them up on our blog too.Alternatively, post it on any social media site with the #mystoryoath and we'll find it :-)We'll see how we devise an engaging performance out of your stories - with your permission of course.

This post is the second part of my reflections after reading Big Magic, by Elizabeth Gilbert

Persistence: Keep at it, keep at it, keep at it​We persist most when we are serious about something. Gilbert encourages us to take vows with our creative lives. It’s a kind of commitment. While we’re at it, we cannot be sure that it will be a breeze. This is where Gilbert talks about the Shit Sandwich. We’ve all had to deal with the shit Sandwich now and then, the so called grunt and the so called rejections. It’s part of the process.

​She urges creative practitioners to take up day jobs in order to support themselves financially to be ale to continue their creative line of work. It’s going to take us time to be able to make a living out of our creative lives. Gilbert herself admits she did not quit her job until she had written and published four books, many of which even won national awards.

Here’s where I tend to think about it differently. I’d say, yes get a day job, but try and get it in an allied field of your work. This I believe can stimulate your creative life far more than a completely unrelated job that could physically drain you out.Time is a very significant contributor in this whole process of creative living. People generally tell me that the work will change with time, for the better. Gilbert also illustrates that the audience will change over time for the better. The same person, who did not connect with your work four years ago, might suddenly find a new way to look at your work and like it very much. So keeping at it is the only way to stay in the game.Trust: You’re not in it alone

Do you love what you do?Do you believe that what you do loves you back?

This mutual love and trust is what is going to keep one’s creative spirit alive. Sometimes when we’re stuck somewhere, when we feel like an idea is just not moving forward, we get this feeling that creativity is pissed off with us. We end up blaming our creative paths for how bad our lives are turning out.

Two years ago, I was devising a play as a collaboration with a Lithuanian artist. One week before the show, we had no idea where the show was headed. We had created all these bits and pieces of work, but we had no idea how it was all going to come together. We were nervous and also blamed the devising process for letting us down. However, we just kept at it and rehearsed the bits that we had put together. And as we were doing that, slowly a narrative emerged and before we knew, we were able to see patterns between the various sketches that we had put together. Though we blamed the process, we just kept at it till the end and that’s what finally helped us. We trusted it and it decided to reciprocate.

Gilbert then questions how seriously one should take themselves and their work. Like most creative practitioners, I’ve also been told that real art comes from a space of suffering. Gilbert urges us to embrace what she calls the Trickster energy vs. the Martyr energy. This is captured beautifully in these two linesMartyr says: “the world can never be solved”Trickster says: “Perhaps not… but it can be gamed”

Sometimes, I am also left with this feeling that I take my work too seriously. But here’s where I am going to try and embrace the trickster energy a bit to see how it shapes my work going forward. This also comes down to style, I guess. If my style is not funny, then can it be playful?

I also feel that creative practitioners tend to be a bit too possessive about their work so much so that a full stop being removed can change the very nature and intent of the piece. Gilbert asks us to think about this in the light of change vs. opportunity. And what you would pick!

I’ve had a lot of trouble changing, editing my theatre pieces. When you look at it with a delete button in hand, everything feels important. A performance of mine called Re:play was part of the Kala Ghoda Festival a few years ago. Owing to time restrictions, we had to keep the performance to under 60 minutes, when it was actually 75 minutes long. 15 minutes of edit seemed like a lot of getting rid of. But I had to let go. And I felt that at the end of it, it was not as bad as I imagined it to be. The audience response was very supportive and I also felt a great level of engagement with the performance that evening.

Divinity: It will go around and come around

When the work travels, it morphs, adapts, changes and when it comes back, you look at it and smile. For the core has remained unchanged, unshaken. It’s still yours in some way and every way.​Thanks Elizabeth Gilbert for sharing your life story and inspirations. Thank you for Big Magic.​

I often ask myself, "What is it that keeps my creative energies high?" My answers usually range from doing new things, taking holidays or eating a good meal or having an engaging conversation. After reading Elizabeth Gilbert's Big Magic, a lot of those ideas have been questioned. I've found myself folding the book and smiling knowingly, that I too am a victim of creative stops and blocks. In this article, I am going to share with you my reflections and moments of realisation as I read Big Magic (Article Part 1/2)

Courage: Do you have the courage to bring forth the treasures that are hidden within you?

In the opening section, Gilbert asks us if we have the courage to put ourselves out there, to put our work out there. Your work will be seen and it will be judged. Very often, I've found myself thinking about what others will think of my work. As a theatre maker, I certainly want people to like my work, but I've also been held back by the fear of someone not liking the work. If nothing, this has just chewed away more time and thought towards editing, polishing and sometimes completely modifying my own work.

I ask myself the things I am scared about. Sometimes it’s the audience, sometimes the media & critics and sometimes.. the list can be endless if I chose fear over courage. I tell myself that putting your work out there is like exposing your mind and body to a bunch of strangers who can see and experience you, your thought and your spirit. If you can dare to do that, you’re already in the game.

When I was in junior school, I used to be an athlete, competing in track and field events. Once, after running the qualifiers I came and told my mom that I don't think I will win the finals. Very casually she asked me why I thought so. "That girl who ran next to me has spiked shoes and I am running barefeet. I am scared." My mother smiled and said, "Dont worry about what's on your leg, think about what's inside" At that moment, it seemed like a one line super motivator. I smiled at my mom and went back and won that race. My mom had subconsciously removed my fear by telling me to look within rather than outside. Today, when I look back and think about this incident as I read Big Magic, I feel like I should be using this mantra in every bit of my work. To look within and find those treasures that are waiting to be unleashed. To not lose fear, but make enough space for it, so that it becomes a collaborator and you learn to work with it.​Enchantment: What is it that keeps you constantly enchanted about your creative living?

In this section, Gilbert pushes us to believe that the world is made up of plants, animals, bacteria, viruses and by ideas. This means that we could be breathing an idea every time we inhale. But we’re going to find it only if we let ourselves be enchanted by this creative living. She tells us the story of Ruth Stone, who would be able to sense an idea in the air and run to her house to grab a pen and a sheet of paper to write it down before its gone.Well, when an idea flirts with you, flirt right back with it. Don’t try and use your judgement or your ego and reserve it for later. I’ve always believed that I am an ideasperson and that I could churn them out one after the other. Once, I was telling someone that I have a set of very different ideas to make plays. My friend got interested and wanted to know more. As I started recounting those ideas to her, I felt like I was slowly improvising because I HAD ACTUALLY FORGOTTEN THOSE IDEAS. I had failed to make note of them and at that moment, it felt like my creative warehouse had just dumped me. Well, I dint really take good care of it, did I? Now, I document, document, document. Be it a story idea or a dream or anything, I jot it down in the nearest sheet of paper, because I am not letting them go JGilbert then talks about what it sometimes means to be weighed down by your own success. She asks why Harper Lee never wrote anything after To kill a mocking bird. Creativity is a muscle and one should keep it warmed up, through and through. When I don’t work on creating theatre for a while, I don’t really feel good about the break. I always feel like I am losing my theatrical eye and that’s a voice you don’t want to hear when you are in the rehearsal studio.Permission: What are you waiting for?

We don’t need anyone to tell us to proceed or give us that green signal we’ve been waiting for. Sometimes, we realise, we’re the ones holding ourselves back. If we took great joy in the smallest of things we did, that’s already a sign of you living your creative life.Gilbert urges us to look at authenticity over originality. Every idea you come up with could have been done before in some way or the other. But just that YOU are in it now, changes it, both for you and the audience. If we’re able to keep the authenticity and bring ourselves into the work, the work will be MAX authentic.In my first week at drama school, we were asked to make a one minute theatrical presentation of ourselves. I wanted to make an impact, so I decided I would play with light and text to create my life story using the ray of light as a metaphor. I held a Par can in my hand and went in a slow circle talking to the people at whom the light was pointed. Somehow, at the end of it, though people came up to me and said they thought it was cool, I was not very convinced. While I was reflecting on my performance that evening, I realised that I was not being myself, but just being dramatic! Next week, we were asked to repeat the same exercise as part of another course and this time, at every moment of the piece I asked myself if I was being authentic. The performance ended up being a lot more personal and engaged much better with the audience as well.

Very often, almost every day we get asked “So, what do you do?” When we meet a new client or a customer or a new joinee in the department, this question is inevitable. And what do we say?

We either say “I work as an Analyst” or “I am a software engineer” or “I am in Marketing”. If we encounter this question so much, how can we create a compelling story out of this? How can we use this opportunity to begin conversations and create impact?

Stories can help make that impact for you. Spend a little time and think about your life journey. How have events in your childhood groomed and shaped who you are. For example, if you are an engineer, can you talk about how passionate you were about fixing gadgets or creating simple machines and how that was a start for you to pursue your specialization?

If you are Marketing FMCG products, can you talk about how you are changing and shaping a million lives? Can you talk about how you always were interested in customer lives and going the extra mile to deliver what is required? Is there a project you did that changed the way you looked at marketing? Were you inspired by someone? We go through so much and yet say so little. How can we communicate our experiences as stories?

In our busy routines, we forget to stop, reflect and embrace our own experiences as stories. We forget about the potential of a good story and how it can completely transform the environment that we are in. Stories are a great way to engage audiences and build connections through conversations. Imagine the possibilities of a good starting point. You can energise environments, build rapports and even communicate your ideas in the process. The best thing about a good story is that, it goes around. People will remember a good story and pass it on. You become more memorable because of your story. By sharing your story, you also reinforce your own values, which makes you a positive person.Activity: What's your story?Through this activity, we are going to try and find a compelling story for the question, "So, what do you do?"You are going to need a small sheet of paper and pen for this activity.

Here are a few questions that I would like you to answer.

In your growing up years, what were you passionate about?

If you had 15 minutes to spare, what would you use it for?

What world causes do you care about?

What human issues would you like to solve?

Have you gained any special skills that help you in your work areas?

​Now, we are going to try and sequence the answers to these in a story format.Stories are always more impactful when they are structured in the following fashion.

1. Introduce the context:Where you are at present.(You can talk about the work you do and specific areas that you manage within the organisation, including people )

2. Fill the story: What's actually going on? Some events from the past.(Talk about how you got interested in this domain of work, what you care about and some challenges that you have encountered along the way)

3. Put yourself in it: What are you going through at this point, physically, mentally and emotionally? What are your observations about what's going on?(Talk about your personal experience in this role and what you have learnt through time and what you believe is the future)

4. The conclusion(Wrap up the story bringing it to what you look forward to)

5. The takeaway(You can now ask the other person questions about their line of work to keep the conversation going)Outcome of theatre based Storytelling workshop

Participants understand how to structure a story in a highly effective manner.

Participants are able to look at their own lives as a set of compelling stories that they can tell, under various situations - Challenges, Successes, Motivational moments, Conflicts, Negotiations

Once these stories get documented, participants can use them to motivate and inspire team members.

In 2012, I was preparing for my first solo, an intimate theatre performance, where I was to share personal moments from my life with the audience sitting around me. I had my lines, my costume and I had rehearsed my act quite a few times. I was confident that I would have a great show. A few days before the show, I invited my mentor into the rehearsal studio to take a look at my performance and give me some feedback. Five minutes into the performance, she stopped me and said that my look was quite intimidating. She asked me soften my gaze and continue my performance. Little did I know that I was intimidating her with my eye contact

When we are busy thinking about what to say, to deliver the facts right, we are unaware about the signals we are sending people, through our body, voice and eyes. Our eyes communicate way more than we think they do. People can gauge the mood that we are in and also be able to predict our emotional state by looking into our eyes. Here's how theatre based training can help us make effective connections and communicate powerfully - through Eyetact.

Activity: Eyetact- focus and movementThrough this activity, we are going to understand focusing techniques and the way our eyes move to address audiences.

Step 1: Take a look at the image below. Pick one marble and focus your gaze at that alone for about 10 seconds

You will notice that your eyes are quite strained after the 10 second sustained focus. This is because, when we look at one particular point, our focus tends to narrow and our eyes widen. This is typically called hard focus and can be intimidating when you are in a one-on-one situation.

The outcome: People in front you can interpret that you are probably angry or irritated. If we kept our gaze in one fixed spot, while addressing a group of people, the others could feel cut off from the conversation.

Step 2: Now sit back and look at the entire image for 10 seconds without paying attention to any one thing in particular.

You are probably more relaxed and you surely notice more in the image than you did the first time. When we relax our gaze, we let things come into our sphere of vision and don't go in search of something particular. This way, we are able to get a better visual insight from what you are looking at.

The outcome: You come across as a relaxed, calm and confident individual. This kind of focus is called soft focus, a friendly, conversational approach to making eye contact. Soft focus is a great way to address a group of people, to inform or inspire. Now that we understand hard focus and soft focus, let's look at how we can move our eyes in a fluid way to make effective connections with our audience.

Step 3: Relax the eyes and bring them to a state of soft focus. Take a look at the image below and move your gaze from marble number 1 to marble number 6. Pay attention to the way the eyes are moving.

When we are addressing multiple people, our eye contact can tend to be a bit jerky, shifting from one person to another. A simple way to make a smooth transition is to imagine a fluid thread connecting the people in the space. This will make the eye movement and transition smooth and powerful.

Step 4: Now repeat the movement from number 1 to 6. You will notice the difference.

*Note that it is also important to move your head along with your eyes. Keeping your head stationery and moving only your gaze will look disconnected.

Outcome of theatre based Eyetact training

Individuals develop an awareness of their eye contact patterns and work on improving their gaze in various situations

The possibilities that eye contact enables and how one can potentially vary their eye contact in different scenarios to enhance overall communication impact.

Participants understand how to read eye contact and the various moods it can portray.

Did you know that way we speak has 5 times higher impact on communication effectiveness than the words we speak?Did you know that our voice quality can influence our credibility?

"A few years ago, I was making a presentation to my CEO on the design of the company's Intranet portal. I was quite excited about my presentation and was raring to go. So when it was my turn, I started by greeting everyone present with a high energy 'Good Morning' and introduced the objective of my presentation. Even before I moved to slide 1, the CEO remarked, 'You are too loud. Can you soften your speech please?' Though my presentation went well and I received a go ahead on the project, this comment was playing in my mind throughout the meeting and afterwards."

When we are unaware of our voice patterns, we can end up being too loud in a conference room or too fast in a team meeting and lose the audience's attention at important moments. We need to carefully understand the intent of our speech, our physical environment and project a suitable voice quality. Each of us have a unique voice and our voice scales are different. We need to understand which scale works for us in different scenarios and adapt our voices accordingly to communicate the desired message.

Activity: VQ Scale(Here's a Voice Quotient scale for you. 1 is the lowest and 10 the highest. 5 is a comfortable middle)Now here's a line for you: "I am thinking about it"

Step 1: Read the line aloud at a comfortable volume.Step 2: Use the Pace Scale provided below and say the same line at a high speed and then at a low speed

Step 3: Now say the same line in a high volume and then in a low volume using the Volume scale

Step 4: Now say the same line in a high tone and then in a low tone.

Did you notice how the various high & low combinations influenced the emotion and the mood that came through ?

Our speech speed, tone and volume certainly contribute to the way we are perceived. The physical space and the context also influence the communication intent and message.

Think about what speed you would take to if you are addressing a group of 50 people?

What tone will you take if you are selling the company's new product to a potential customer across the table

If you are talking to your colleague over coffee about a challenge you are encountering, what volume/pitch/speed will you resort to?

Outcome of Voice Quotient Training through theatre

Individuals develop and awareness of their present speech patterns through multiple simulated environments

Individuals understand how to craft their communication in the most effective manner

This is a line you will hear quite often in meeting rooms and conferences. When projects are outlined, team members have to possess the ability to visualise outcomes. From envisioning product designs and packaging to new concept developments to consumer understanding, one has to be able to combine skills of imagination with knowledge and creativity.

How does one train to visualise better? Are there ways to develop imagination skills?

Theatre based training can enable visualisation and help participants understand the power of detailing, visual population and creative thought.Activity: Imagineer(Read the description below. Once you've finished, take 30 seconds and then scroll down to look at the questions)"He is wearing a striped blue tie. The tie has the letters KC embroidered on it. There is a metallic pen in his shirt pocket. You can smell musk. You hear the words, "Are we ready for this?" There is a moment of silence. He pulls out his pen, opens it and signs a document. There is applause and he smiles jubilantly."

(Take 30 seconds now and imagine the scene)Now that you have a visual frame of this event, try and answer these questions.

1. What was the man's name?2. What was the colour of his shirt?3. What kind of hair did he have?4. How tall was he?5. Did he have a beard?6. Were there paintings in the room that he was in?7. What was the shape of the table?8. What time of the day/night was it?9. What brand of perfume was he wearing?10. Was coffee/tea served at the table?How many questions did you have the answers to?

We often default to the stated observations; limiting ourselves by what is available and provided, hence not seeing the bigger picture.

By going beyond the obvious, by including what lies in the periphery – by imagining better, we are able to create a richer picture and a more compelling vision.

When the mind trains to process information as visuals, it enables individuals and teams to develop the skills to look at fine details as they are composing the image in their mind's eye.

Process:By playing characters or by portraying a variety of situations through their bodies and voice, one develops the ability to quickly fill up visuals with information to get an idea of the bigger picture. When they observe fellow participants going through the same process, they understand the possibilities and the different ways in which an idea can be portrayed. This enhances their field of imagination and builds up their image bank, which comes in handy the next time they set out to visualise a situation.

Some situations where this could be of help

Envisioning a project from start to finish, capturing all the required elements

An important presentation capturing the fine details of the project - which will help get buy-in from stakeholders.

A deep understanding of the customer and their circumstances which will become the base for project development